Tale of Two Cities: Mormons Vs Catholics

by William Taylor, Bill Taylor

Fr. Taylor presents a fair and even-handed comparison of Catholicism and Mormonism from a Catholic perspective. Missing is the bitter polemics which characterizes too much of the comparative religion genre aimed at lay readers. The book's main strenghts are eight chapters which briefly present Mormon beliefs and then compare and contrast those beliefs with Catholic beliefs on the same subject. Fr. Taylor is careful not to disparage Mormon beliefs when he describes them. This, along with his refusal to slander Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, set his book apart in its field. Written by a faithful Catholic this book aims to educate lay Catholic readers on the basic beliefs of Mormonism. This book is not an exhaustive treatise or inacessable scholarly tome. Nonetheless Fr. Taylor does an outstanding job presenting the basics of Mormon beliefs in an organized manner for the average reader. In the end Fr. Taylor explains why he has problems with the Book of Mormon. The Mormon reader will no doubt be frustrated with this if he or she does not take this book for what it is: a fair and charitable comparison from the Catholic perspective. Hot-blooded partisans from both the Catholic and Mormon faiths will dislike this book. One camp because Fr. Taylor writes honestly about the differences, the other camp because he shows respect for those who have beliefs different from his. This is a book written by a man of good will for people of good will. I recommend "A Tale of Two Cities" rather than spending time and money on "When Mormons Call" by Isaiah Bennett. Mr. Bennett is strident and uncharitable in his writing style. Without question Fr. Taylor has written the best introductory comparison of the two faiths available today for the lay reader.